River Cities Alliance
Context:
Recently, the 2025 Action Plan under the River Cities Alliance was approved by the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG).
- The initiative plans to embed river-sensitive thinking into city master plans across India.
Relevance:
- GS2: Governance, Government initiatives
- GS3: Urbanization, Environmental Conservation
- Prelims: Recent initiatives related to river conservation and urban development
What’s the issue?
- Urbanization often leads to river degradation.
- The RCA 2025 Action Plan focuses on building capacity, technical expertise, and collaboration to ensure Indian cities grow while preserving their rivers.
About River Cities Alliance (RCA):
- It was launched by the Ministry of Jal Shakti and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) in 2021.
- Objective:
- Strengthen the institutional capacities of the cities.
- Promote inter-city collaboration.
- Enhance the preparation of Urban River Management Plans (URMPs).
- Membership:
- 145 cities (and expanding).
- Any river city can join voluntarily.
About Urban River Management Plans (URMPs):
- Initiated by: National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) and NMCG (in 2020).
- Purpose: Integrate environmental, economic, and social aspects into river management.
- Current Progress: 5 cities (Kanpur, Ayodhya, Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar, Moradabad, Bareilly) have completed their URMPs.
- Recognition: Kham River Restoration Mission (Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar) won global recognition at the World Resources Institute’s Ross Centre Prize for Cities.
Prelims Practice Question:
- Consider the following statements regarding the River Cities Alliance (RCA):
- It was launched by the Ministry of Jal Shakti in collaboration with the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
- Only cities along the Ganga River can join the Alliance.
- Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar’s Kham River Mission received international recognition for river restoration.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
- A) 3 only
- B) 1 and 2 only
- C) 1 and 3 only
- D) 2 and 3 only
Answer: A
(Explanation: Statement 1 is wrong — it’s Jal Shakti + Housing and Urban Affairs, not Environment Ministry. Statement 2 is wrong — any river city can join.)
Also Know:
Namami Gange Programme (NGP):
- It is an Integrated Conservation Mission, to accomplish the twin objectives of effective abatement of pollution, conservation and rejuvenation of National River Ganga.
- The program was launched in 2014-15 with a budgetary outlay of ₹ 20,000 crore, for five years, up to March 2021.
- The vision for Ganga rejuvenation revolves around restoring the river’s wholesomeness, defined by ensuring “Aviral Dhara” (Continuous Flow), “Nirmal Dhara” (Unpolluted Flow), and maintaining its geological and ecological integrity.
